Christopher Paul Stelling to Open the Holiday Hootenanny

Christopher Paul Stelling opens the grass clippings holiday hootenanny at The Rock Shop on December 5th. Photo by Clarance K.

Good news and bad news. We’ll start with the bad: The Whiskey Collection has a scheduling issue with the grass clippings holiday hootenanny featuring Joy Kills Sorrow and Plume Giant and will not be able to open the show as planned (see disclaimer below).

BUT…the good news is that we’ve found an fantastic guy to take their opening spot: the fast-picking gospel folk troubadour Christopher Paul Stelling. I became a fan of Stelling’s from the first 10 seconds of his album, Songs of Praise & Scorn (Amazon MP3 & Spotify). Stelling, who has shared the stage with Shovels & Rope, Jonathan Wilson and David Mayfield Parade, makes for a damn fine stand in. Here what others have said about him and a few samples from his Last FM CMJ session last month…

“Every song on his debut album Songs of Praise and Scorn cooks with both down-home comfort and avant-garde brio, Stelling building earthy folk troubadour stories over a fluster of wild arpeggios.” –The Village Voice

“…what a real self-contained, modern-day troubadour looks and sounds like. Songs of Praise and Scorn is a fine way to introduce someone who should be a voice to be reckoned with in the years to come.” –American Songwriter

“The is a reverence in and of Christopher Paul Stelling that is immediately perceptible. It’s striking and it’s powerful. It’s a draw. It’s a magnetism that sucks you right into the landscape that he sees.” – Sean Moeller, Daytrotter

PLEASE NOTE: The Whiskey Collection was originally scheduled to open the show, but the band had an unfortunate scheduling issue and had to cancel. We think we’ve got an amazing lineup, but in case you were only interested in seeing The Whiskey Collection and purchased an advanced ticket, you can get a refund on your ticket through Ticketfly (and that is the ONLY way you’ll be able to get a refund).